DRUG STING NABS 38 SUSPECTS

A roundup of street-level drug dealers is underway after a Kamloops
RCMP undercover operation targeted the drug trade in the city's red
zones.

Two of 38 suspects identified in Project E-Passerine faced trafficking
charges in Kamloops provincial court Wednesday.

Insp. Yves Lacasse said the others are expected to be in custody in
the coming days.

"These are very visible people on the street. We see them downtown on
Victoria Street and on the North Shore," Lacasse said.

"Normally we target the upper echelon, but there have been a lot of
requests from the community . . . to take care of these problems."

Ten officers worked zones on the North and South Shore -- areas where
illicit drug sales and prostitution occur daily.

Police identified 19 people selling crack cocaine in downtown
Kamloops, 11 in the zone bordering Tranquille Road.

Six purchases were from known sex-trade workers. Four trafficked the
drugs to undercover officers on two separate occasions.

No weapons were seized during the investigation. A total of 42
trafficking charges are pending.

"What this is going to do is hopefully clean up these areas and
restore a healthy lifestyle for these neighbourhoods for a period of
time," Lacasse said.

There's a perception in the community that red zones are created to
target sex-trade workers. Lacasse said this is not the case.

"The red zone is going to be used for property-crime offences, drug
crime, sex-trade workers and the johns. . . . What we're hoping is
that, overall, this will reduce crime."

North Shore Business Improvement Association president Peter Mutrie
applauded the operation, saying the zones are a tool police can use to
target low-level crime.

"Congratulations to the RCMP for doing their job," he said.

Coun. Arjun Singh has criticized the red zones, saying banning
prostitutes from parts of the city doesn't provide a long-term, stable
solution to the sex trade.

His attitude towards police using the zones to nab drug dealers is
decidedly different. He said drugs are one way people are lured into
the sex trade. By targeting the dealers, police are helping the victims.

"I think going after the drug dealers is great. It's such a great
idea. These are people causing a lot of problems in the community," he
said.

Mutrie said people need to work together if the sex and drug trades
are to be stopped.

"More people need to get involved in finding a solution instead of
pointing fingers at each other," he said.